Baby Steps
by MelodySnowdrop
Summary: Short stories based around Vastra and Jenny being mothers! Chapter 6 is now up! :)
1. Here Comes Baby

**A/N**

**Sorry I've been away for a while but I'm struggling with school and stress ;-;**

Vastra couldn't stand it any longer. Jenny's screams were deafening and it broke Vastra's heart. She wanted to be in there with her darling wife, but Jenny knew that it would be torture for her to see her in such a state. Even so, Vastra had now decided to burst in and hold Jenny's hand.

Then the screaming stopped just as Vastra ran in and Jenny flopped back, exhausted and filled with relief that the pain was over. Strax held a small bundle of blankets in his arms. "It's a girl! Shall I destroy it?" He said excitedly. Vastra glared at him and snatched the baby off him, being careful not to be too aggressive as she did so, cradling the little mammal gently in her arms.

"Shh, shh... Let's go over to Mummy. Look at you, little one! So beautiful..." Jenny held the baby girl and stroked her hair, unraveling the blankets and wrapping her up in a more comfortable fashion than Strax could manage.

"Hello, sweetheart. I'm your mother. And that grumpy green lady is as well." The child opened her eyes and stared at Jenny, who was smiling tenderly. "She's got your eyes, Vastra."

Madame Vastra walked over and sat on the edge of the bed. The little mammal had the brightest, bluest eyes in the world, and the Silurian felt as though she wanted to protect and spoil her forever and ever.

"What shall we name our little darlin'?" Jenny asked, looking up.

"You choose. We agreed if it's a girl, you choose and if it's a boy, I choose, so fire away."

"I quite like Annabelle. Suits her, don't you think?"

Vastra smiled. "Hello, little Annabelle."

Jenny then wanted to sleep, so Vastra sat in a chair next to her and held Annabelle in her arms, speaking to her softly.

"When you're a bit older you will see not everyone is like me and your mother. No ape seems to support the idea of us being together, but you will be different, darling, and you'll be the most beautiful mammal to have walked the Earth." Annabelle gurgled softly and started crying, waking Jenny up.

"Vastra? What's wrong? Where's Annabelle?!" Jenny was suddenly up and alert, her eyes searching.

"She's here, safe and sound. I think she's hungry, dear." Vastra passed Jenny Annabelle, and her wife sighed with relief. Strax had to show her how to breast feed, and Jenny was honestly surprised on how much he knew.

"You were right about her being hungry!" The younger woman laughed softly.

"Do you think I'll be a good mother?"

Jenny smiled softly. "Of course I do. You're doing everything right so far anyway. It's like you're born to do this."

"Thank you, Jenny." Vastra couldn't believe it.

She had a family again.

**A/N**

**Thanks for reading! Think I'll make this a series if you all like it :)**


	2. Goodnight, Little One

**A/N**

**I'm glad you all enjoyed the first one! Thanks for all your feedback :D Definitely going to try and make this a series.**

Six months had passed since Jenny had given birth to Annabelle, and in that time they had discovered that she was a lot more like Vastra than they both thought. Annabelle was a lot cleverer than most babies - 'a quality of hatchlings', Vastra said - and she was often sniffing the air, indicating she had a keen sense of smell like her mother.

Every night, Vastra would pick Annabelle up and sit her on her lap, singing in Silurian. It really was a beautiful sound and it often lulled Annabelle to sleep (sometimes, it even lulled Jenny to sleep!). One night, however, Annabelle seemed to be a bit restless. She was even trying to make the words her mother was speaking.

"Here, let me try." Jenny said, lifting Annabelle up. She hummed softly, swayed gently, her hand stroking the baby's hair and sure enough, the child was out like a light.

"Such a good mother." Vastra whispered, standing up and putting her arm around Jenny. They both walked into the Nursery and Jenny placed Annabelle into her cot, kissing her on her forehead. Vastra did the same.

"Sweet dreams, little one." Jenny said, her voice but a whisper. She closed the door and linked Vastra's arm. "Bed?" She asked.

"Bed." Vastra replied. Having a baby meant a lot of sleepless nights. The couple opened the door to the room next to the Nursery and they both collapsed on the bed. Jenny rolled over and buried her face in her wife's neck.

"I love you so, so much." Jenny whispered.

"I love you too. Come on, get up - we need to put our nightgowns on." The Silurian shook Jenny softly. The younger woman groaned, got up and changed, only to flop down on the bed again.

"Listen..." Vastra muttered in her wife's ear.

"What?"

"No crying, none at all." Vastra stroked Jenny's hair and twirled strands of it around her pinkie finger.

"I have honestly forgotten what silence is."

"It's bliss. Come here, little mammal." Jenny moved closer and curled up next to her wife. Vastra held her close. They were just about to drift off to sleep...

And then there was a wailing sound.

They both groaned. "That kid has good timing..." Jenny muttered sarcastically before getting up and seeing to Annabelle.


	3. Auntie Clara and Uncle Doctor

**A/N**

**Thanks for all your lovely reviews 3 glad you are all enjoying this! Also, if you have a suggestion for this series, feel free to PM me! I plan to keep writing these stories and perhaps a few where Annabelle is a teenager... I think it would be quite interesting to see that :D anyway, please enjoy and remember to review, favourite and follow!**

"When do you think the Doctor and Clara will arrive?" Jenny asked, Annabelle on her hip.

"Sometime today, I hope. He said that Clara is bringing some baby toys from the future for Annabelle." Vastra said, walking over to her wife and child.

"God, she is spoilt! Aren't you spoilt?" The younger woman teased, pressing her nose against the baby's. Annabelle giggled in reply and clapped her hands. Suddenly, they heard a familiar sound.

"The TARDIS!" Vastra smiled. They both turned round and saw it appear right before their eyes, Annabelle not particularly fond of the noises. Clara emerged from the blue box first.

"Oh! Hello! Nice to see you again." Clara said, smiling at them both and then turning her attention to the baby on Jenny's hip. "Oh, she is beautiful!" The Doctor emerged from the TARDIS.

"Hello, you three. Sorry, we meant to end up outside in the back garden, but-"

"But he got it wrong, as usual." Clara chimed in, smirking. Annabelle pointed at the Doctor and said something like "ah-ya!"

"Don't say that about my eyebrows!" The Doctor said, pointing his screwdriver at her which just made her laugh even more. Everyone looked puzzled. "I speak Baby." The Doctor explained.

"Aga-ra boo!" Annabelle said, which roughly translates as "Why are you holding a magic wand? Are you a fairy?"

"Did you teach her to be this cheeky towards me?" The Doctor pointed at Vastra, who just laughed.

"Annabelle, meet your Auntie Clara and your Uncle Doctor." Jenny said, smiling at the child.

"Hello, Annabelle!" Clara said softly, waving.

"Hello, you little monkey!" The Doctor said, walking over to her and shaking her tiny hand. Immediately, the baby pulled away, reached out again and pinched his nose.

"Stop being so cheeky, you!" Vastra took her off Jenny and lifted her up high, making the child shriek with joy.

The old friends were chatting together and laughing together before long, and Annabelle loved all the attention she was getting from Clara, and loved the toys she brought even more. Her favourite was a small doll in a red rose dress. She had short, woollen, brown hair and a small smile. Annabelle hugged her tightly, nuzzling her nose into the doll's hair, causing everyone to go "ahhhhh!" (Even the Doctor!)

"Hmm, very interesting..." The Doctor murmured as he scanned Annabelle with his Sonic Screwdriver.

"What are you doing?" Vastra asked.

"Medical checks." The Doctor said, looking up to see Vastra and Jenny's concerned faces. "I known you must have taken her to have some, but I am sure you will agree that this technology is a lot better. Oh, don't look so worried! She's perfectly healthy!"

Jenny breathed a sigh of relief. "What's so interesting, then?"

"Her IQ is a lot higher than normal for an infant of her age. I am sure that is thanks to her Silurian mother."

Vastra held Jenny's hand in defence. "Jenny is particularly intelligent, Doctor."

"I know, but she wouldn't have been as an infant. This child seems to be taking in the world around her at an alarming rate and she also seems to understand it all. Very fascinating." The Doctor put the Screwdriver away.

"You should be proud!" Clara said to the two other women, and they nodded in agreement.

"Oh, good, you've finished with your magic wand. Can I play with it now?" Annabelle said in her own language, arms reaching out towards the Doctor. He was about to say no, but...

"Under my supervision, Annabelle, yes you can." The Doctor picked her up and sat her on his knee. Then, he handed her the Screwdriver.

"Is it safe for her to be playing with that, Doctor?" Jenny asked, reaching for the screwdriver.

"Yes, yes! I wouldn't let her play with anything dangerous. If any harm came to Annabelle, well... An angry Jenny is frightening, an angry Vastra is terrifying, but an angry Vastra and an angry Jenny is Hell on Earth!" The Doctor said, and everyone burst into a fit of laughter!


	4. A Very Loud Milestone

**A/N**

**Okay, so I am definitely going to try and post these once a day if I can! I just love hearing all the feedback from you guys :D thank you so much!**

Jenny and Vastra were sat in the drawing room on the floor, playing with 11-month-old Annabelle. The infant was giggling and clapping her hands with joy as Vastra made the doll that Clara got her dance around, whilst humming an upbeat tune. Jenny smiled at her beloved wife and daughter, mostly at Vastra's unusual behavior. It's not every day you see a lizard woman from the dawn of time playing with a baby mammal who isn't even a year old yet, after all!

"What's distracting you so, dear?" Vastra asked, giving the small doll to Annabelle who took it without hesitation.

"Just daydreamin', my darlin'." Jenny said, looking into those bright, blue eyes. "And thinkin' about how lucky we are."

Vastra chuckled. "So very lucky. We have the most beautiful baby in the entire world, we have a perfectly pleasant home and a warrior/nurse for a butler. What more could anyone want in the world?"

Jenny was about to reply when she was interrupted by a little voice saying, "mama!"

Vastra's head turned sharply. "What did you say, sweetheart?"

"Ma...ma!" Annabelle said, pointing at Vastra. "Mama!' She said again, this time pointing at Jenny.

The two women turned to each other and grinned. "Clever girl! Well done!" Jenny said, picking Annabelle up and placing her on her lap, kissing her on the cheek and tickling her on the tummy.

Vastra stood up and swooped the child off her wife, laughing and blowing a raspberry on the baby's cheek. "Aren't you a clever little angel? Look at you! So grown up!"

Suddenly, a giant BANG! shocked the whole household, and the laughter turned into tears. Annabelle hated thunder.

"Shh, shh! It's alright, darling! It's only thunder. There, there. Such a brave little girl..." Vastra rocked the baby on her hip gently, swaying this way and that.

"Mama! Mama!" Annabelle mumbled and pointed to Jenny, who also comforted the child.

"Come sit down, Vastra. Here, look Annabelle - it's Dolly!" Jenny said, shaking the doll softly in front of Annabelle who gave another muffled "mama..."

"You take her, Jenny. Hum along whilst I sing. You know the tune - I sing it every night." Vastra passed Jenny Annabelle, and Jenny held her close, swaying and humming along to the tune that Vastra was singing. Annabelle buried her face in her mother's neck and made a few gurgling sounds before finally settling down and falling asleep. Jenny smiled and kept swaying.

"She's brave like you, Vastra. A brave and fierce warrior who fears no one."

"That's not true. I fear one thing more than anything." Vastra said, wiping a strand of hair from her wife's face.

"What's that?" Jenny asked.

Vastra put her arm around her wife and kissed her sweet daughter on her head.

"Losing you two..." She whispered quietly.


	5. Stop Fighting!

**A/N**

**Sorry I've been away for ages (again...)! Finally had the time to come back to this. I'd been working on Chapter 5 for ages but it was getting very long-winded and I just didn't like it anymore. So, an entirely different plot, and I've got something special coming up for a later chapter too! (Which might not make total sense, but you never apply logic to Who...)**

**Okay, happy reading! :D**

13 Paternoster Row, late at night...

Annabelle sat up in her bed, hugging her knees. The five-year-old shut her eyes tight and begged for the fighting between her mothers would stop.

"You're always rude to everyone! To me, the Doctor, Strax... Even Annabelle! Your own daughter, Vastra!"

"And _you_ are so stubborn! Just a stubborn ape! You never listen!"

"Insensitive lizard! Our daughter can hear you!"

The shouting stopped. Annabelle heard footsteps. She wiped her tears and pretended to be asleep, holding the cuddly doll from the future Clara got her close.

"Annabelle?" Jenny whispered, poking her head around the door. She could tell her daughter was awake - the sniffling gave it away.

"Oh, Annabelle. Shh, shh. It's alright." Jenny sat down on the bed and stroked her little girl's hair, so similar to her own. Vastra sat on the other side, wiping the tears from Annabelle's cheeks with her thumb.

"Stop fighting!" Annabelle croaked between tears, burying her face in her pillow.

Jenny laid down on the bed next to Annabelle, cuddling her close. "We're sorry, little one. We've stopped fighting."

Vastra stared at Jenny, her beautiful Jenny. "I still love your mother, Annabelle." The little girl looked up at her Silurian mother. "I always will. No matter how much we fight."

"It doesn't sound like it..." The child mumbled.

"Married couples fight, sweetheart." Vastra whispered. "We fought many times before you were born, but we always resolved it."

Jenny smiled. "I'd destroy a planet to save your mother if I had to."

"And so would I." Vastra smiled back.

Annabelle sat up, clutching her doll. "A whole planet?"

"So long as you weren't on it, yes." Jenny whispered. Annabelle giggled.

"No matter how much we fight, we will always, always love each other. And we will always, always love you." Vastra whispered, tucking Annabelle's hair behind her ear and kissing her forehead, making a soft purring sound. (A sign of love, shared among Silurian mothers and hatchlings) Annabelle did it back, smiling.

"Now, come on." Jenny said, picking her daughter up. "Why don't you come sleep in our bed tonight, darling?" Annabelle smiled and nodded her head, burying her face into her mother's neck.

"Mama?" Annabelle asked tiredly as Jenny tucked her in.

"What were you fighting about? I didn't hear that part..."

Jenny paused and looked at Vastra. "Just... Grown up things. It doesn't matter." She climbed into bed next to her daughter and Vastra followed.

The two women curled up close to their little girl, their one true treasure.

Annabelle knew her existence was impossible, but she didn't fully understand, though she was rather intelligent for a girl her age. She did not realise she shouldn't even exist.

And she won't - not yet. Not for now.


	6. In Bed With A Cold

Jenny woke up even earlier than she usually did. Nowadays, she usually rose at 9. The sun was just rising and the room was filled with a subtle pinky-orange glow shining through the curtains. The younger woman rolled over so she was facing Vastra and smiled to see her darling curled up in a ball and snoring slightly, her scales looking even more fascinating and beautiful in the sunrise.

The woman yawned, sat up, rubbed her eyes and got up as quietly as she could, careful not to wake her Vastra. She padded over to the wardrobe and pulled out some clothes - a shirt, a tie, a blue waistcoat, a black skirt, some stockings and a pair of boots - and got changed. She sat down in front of the mirror and brushed her hair, sighing at her sleep-deprived face. She rubbed her red nose and coughed a little because of her sore throat. Every single winter, she always got a cold. She winced a little at the knots in her hair before tying it back into her usual bun. Jenny smiled softly and weakly before walking into the bedroom next door, the nursery, and checking on her sleeping daughter.

Having a child had changed her life most definitely for the better. It was tiring, yes, but she adored every second of it. As she watched the sleeping Annabelle, she sighed happily, because no matter how tired her daughter could make her, no matter how preposterous her excuses for not eating her greens were and no matter how stubborn she could be, Jenny could not have wanted a better daughter.

The mother walked over to Annabelle's bed and tucked the sheets under her chin. She planted a kiss on her temple and picked up the child's favourite doll, tucking her close next to Annabelle. Tutting at the mess, Jenny started to pick up some of her daughter's possessions - mainly photos, books and toys. The girl had a few things from the future, such as pictures and postcards of the Doctor and Clara and all the things they have seen. The Doctor's cross expression on them all often made Jenny smile. She left some things for Annabelle to tidy. It was her room, and she had to learn to clean up after herself at some point anyway, if she wasn't in bed all day again.

Annabelle and Vastra had been awake most of the night with terrible colds, leaving Jenny to do almost everything on her own. Strax was never any help - he just wanted to obliterate every dirty dish and destroy every item of clothing that needed mending. He did, however, do a very good job of delivering water and anything they were willing to eat to the sick lizard and child.

Annabelle, the poor child, had gotten up around four times in the night saying she was having scary dreams and there were monsters out to get her. Jenny had to check every time in the same places - under the bed, in the wardrobe and behind the curtains. Of course, there was never anything there, and Jenny told her daughter this every time in a soft and kind and reassuring way.

"There's nothin' there, darlin'." Jenny had whispered.

"Are you sure, Mama?" Annabelle whispered back.

"Yes, little one. Even if there were any monsters, they wouldn't harm you."

"What? Monsters hurt everyone!"

"They don't, dear. Monsters are creatures who are not the prettiest so people say they are terrible, scary creatures, but in fact, they are very polite." She decided against telling the child about the terrible people and creatures she had faced.

"Really?" Annabelle smiled.

"Really. Look at your mother." Jenny gave a slight smile, "I thought she was a monster at first, with her scales and claws and sharp teeth, but look where we are now - married, in love and a daughter."

Annabelle smiled. "I don't believe you were scared of her."

"I was. But I tried not to show it. Soon, I saw past her stubbornness and her scales, and saw who she really was. A person. I grew to love her more than anything and the scales I once thought scary turned into one of the things I love most about her." Jenny bumped her forehead against Annabelle's lightly, "just because someone is different doesn't make them scary - it makes them who they are. It makes them beautiful. You, my precious girl, are part Silurian and part human. That is extraordinary! So long as your heart is good, it doesn't matter what you are."

The woman exited the room and walked downstairs. She started to clean the house, humming as she did so. By the time she finished the kitchen, Vastra's study and the drawing room, it was almost time to wake Vastra up. She dreaded that. The Silurian had never been a morning person, and it was even worse if she was ill. The night before, Vastra hadn't even been able to lift her head without severe pain.

"Jenny?" She mumbled while in bed, wrapped in several blankets.

"Mm?"

"Will you sing to me?"

Jenny blinked a few times. "What?"

"Or hum. It might lull me to sleep." Vastra groaned, trying to blink the pain behind her eyes away.

"Won't it make your head worse?"

"I don't think it can get any worse, dear. Please..."

So Jenny hummed and stroked Vastra's head, lulling her to sleep.

Jenny walked up the stairs and into her and Vastra's room. She shook her sleeping wife gently.

"Vastra, darlin', it's time to wake up. How are you feeling?"

Vastra groaned and pulled the covers over her head. She hissed at the light of the room. "My head..." She mumbled.

Jenny sighed. "Oh, dear..."

"Can we have a family day? Just you, me and Annabelle? No chores, no shopping, no murders... Just family time?" Vastra asked from under her duvet cave.

"I wish, dear."

They were interrupted by a small coughing fit from the next room. "Annabelle doesn't sound any better..." Jenny murmered.

"Hello, little one." Jenny said as she walked into Annabelle's room. "You don't sound much better..."

The child's nose was bright red and runny, and she was sniffling and rubbing her head. "My throat hurts..." She croaked, coughing a little more.

"That's a nasty cold!" Jenny tutted, sitting on the bed.

"Is Mother poorly?" Annabelle coughed.

"Yes, dear, with a cold like you are."

"Won't you get a cold?"

Jenny shook her head and coughed slightly. "I've got a cold. Not as bad as yours though."

Annabelle frowned. "You should go to bed then."

"There's things to do. This house won't tidy itself, and someone has to look after you and your Mother."

"But you'll get sicker, Mama, and when you're sick and Mother's better, Mother will have to cook and clean, and she's not very good at those things!"

Jenny laughed at that. "Very true. Don't say that to her, though, Annabelle. She does try, bless her heart..."

"I can hear you, you know. There's only a wall between us!" Vastra called groggily.

Annabelle giggled. Well, tried to. The laugh turned into a cough. "Oops!" She grinned wearily.

Jenny giggled croakily back and placed a finger to her lips. "Shhh! We don't want Mother waking up before she's better! Try and get some sleep. It'll make you feel better." Jenny whispered.

The woman checked in on her wife and child regularly between chores. Vastra was either half awake or dozing, and her head was above the covers instead of deep underneath.

"Head feelin' better, then?" Jenny asked quietly, tracing the scales on her wife's head with her fingertips.

"You're certainly soothing it, my dear." Vastra replied just as quietly, her mouth curling into a little smile.

Jenny lay down on the bed next to Vastra. "What you thinkin'?" She asked, noticing the thoughtful expression on her wife's face.

"About this case I was sent the other day."

"Oi! No lyin'!" Jenny cried.

"Jenny, I know you want me to forget about this matter but I simply can't." Vastra sighed, clutching her wife's hand. "How... How does Annabelle even exist? We are both female and of different species, we could not possibly have a child, and when you told me you were pregnant I couldn't believe it and now-"

Jenny interrupted her. Her voice was stern and expression fuming. "And now we have the most beautiful, remarkable child in the world. Oh why can't you ever just be happy?!" The young woman stormed out, leaving Vastra cold and her head still sore.

Annabelle sat up and pulled herself out of bed, wobbling horrendously. She grabbed her doll and slowly made her way to her mothers' bedroom. Every step made her all the more dizzy, and she had to lean on the wall for support.

Once she reached the bedroom, she stumbled over to the bed and tried to climb in. She sighed and fell down a few times before asking for help.

"Mother, can you pull me up?"

Vastra's blue eyes slowly opened and a smile appeared on her face.

"Come on, little one." Vastra whispered softly. "I am sure you can do it."

"But I'm not well!" The child whined. "And I'm only small!"

"I can't lift my head much, dear. One final go. I want to see how good you are at climbing." The Silurian rolled onto her side, facing her daughter. "You are part Silurian, after all."

The small child rubbed her eyes and jumped, wriggling and squirming and trying to pull herself up. "I did it!" She cried.

Vastra smiled as she saw that the young girl had scrambled up onto the bed and was now peering over her into her eyes.

"I got lonely and so did Dolly." She whined, lying down next to her mother and curling up in a ball. Vastra smiled. The child was out like a light in no time, only moving to edge herself closer into her mother's arms.

Jenny watched in the doorway and fiddled with the collar of her shirt.

"And you spend your time worrying about her existence!" Jenny muttered softly, before taking off her boots and curling up under the covers to join them.


End file.
